The World Keeps Turning
by SoManyWords
Summary: A Doctor Who fan fiction. What if everything could be fixed? What if everyone could return? Rose. Donna. Amy. Rory. River. Even Jack. So many wait for him. The Doctor. Their Doctor Without knowing he's right around the corner.


Amy Pond sat at the window. She looked over New York. The city had a pretty glow due to the lights but Amy hardly saw it. She was thinking what she always thought about everyday of her life; how she was going to get out of that hell hole.

Yes, New York was beautiful. Full of colour. Full of light. Full of... people. So many people. Brilliant, funny, intelligent, amazing people.

Only... The people were not the Doctor. And they never would be. Even Rory agreed.

Rory.

Amy glanced over at him. He had fallen asleep on the sofa, legs stretched out, snoring softly. Occasionally he moved but other than that, he was a good sleeper. It was one of the things she was grateful for.

She turned back towards the window, setting her eyes on the startling city of New York. It had begun to rain. Thick drops of water made their way down the glass like spiderweb patterns.

Amy tried to hold in the sadness she felt. The emptiness. She had felt nothing but sadness and emptiness since she'd made her choice to go with Rory. Still, she couldn't regret her decision. She loved Rory.

It was him and her.

Together.

Until the end.

...

"ROSE. ROSE DUCK. NOW. ROSE."

Rose ducked. It was quite an accomplishment whilst holding a machine gun. The heavy metal weighed her down, so she had no choice but to fall onto the hard concrete floor. As soon as she felt her knees hit the ground, a series of laser shots flew over her head. She hardly had time to get her breath back before the chilling words of: "EXTERMINATE," filled her ears.

Oh great. Even more daleks.

"ROSE."

She looked around upon hearing her name in that voice. The voice she would answer anytime, regardless of what she was doing. In a storm, at work, or let's say... In the middle of a dalek invasion.

He stood there, without a gun of course, his face masked into a look of utter anger and despair. The Doctor. Her Doctor.

"ROSE," he yelled again, "GO ON."

"I'M NOT LEAVING YOU," She yelled back. They'd had this argument one too many times.

"ROSE."

She ducked again as another wave of lasers went flying past her head. He did so too, holding out a hand for her, begging with his eyes for her to take it. She couldn't help but smile, despite the daleks. Pulling herself to her feet, she ran towards him, taking his hand gratefully.

They began to run, their shoes barely scraping the concrete as they ran round a corner, free of daleks.

The Doctor leant back on the wall heavily, breathing deeply.

"Have you worked out how they got here yet?" Rose asked, clutching a stitch in her side.

"Not yet," He panted, "There is a surface over this world. An unbreakable, solid surface that nothing can get through. It's sealed. Completely. Nothing should be able to get through it."

"But something did. The daleks."

"Come on. We need to get back to the TARDIS."

...

Donna sat at the kitchen table, chewing thoughtfully on her pencil. She was trying to remember last night's dream. There was lots of blue, she could remember that much. The rest was all a blur.

As she sat, she watched the sun gradually light up the room, casting an early morning glow. The birds had been tweeting for hours and Donna wished they'd BLOODY SHUT UP, as she'd so yelled out the window.

"Ah, you're up," Shaun said. Donna looked up to see him make his way into the kitchen. "I thought I heard your loving, gentle early morning tones."

"The birds were annoying me."

"What doesn't annoy you?" He asked, softly kissing her forehead.

"Coffee. Stick the kettle on, will you?"

"I've just got up!" he said.

"And I've got a headache," she complained.

They stared at each other for a while without blinking, both determined to win the war. Usually Donna was able to win regardless of the opponent. Eventually Shaun looked away, holding his hands up in a surrender. "Fine! The things I do for you, Donna Temple."

"Oi! You might want to think about the things I do for you. Let's not forget who convinced you to cash in that lottery ticket." She straightened herself up at those words, proud her stubbornness was the reason they were now rich.

"Yeah, yeah." He poured the water into two matching mugs and finished off making the tea. "Here you go," he told her, handing her one.

She took a long, grateful sip. "Tar."

"Donna..."

Donna glanced up. Shaun only used that tone when he wanted to talk about something serious with her. It was a deadly tone and whenever he used it, her head jumped to her worst fears. What if he'd decided he didn't want to be with her anymore? It was stupid, she knew, but she couldn't shake the feeling. It never made sense for him to love her. He was kind, quiet, thoughtful whereas she... Well, she was the complete opposite. Loud. Annoying. Stupid.

More than once people had questioned their pairing. After all, he could have anyone just as kind, quiet and thoughtful. Donna spent the whole time shouting at the world because it wouldn't listen. Because she was insignificant.

She swallowed. She was being stupid again.

"Is there something you're not telling me?" He asked, still in that soft, probing tone.

"No," She answered truthfully. "I tell you everything."

"Oh."

"Why?" She asked.

"No reason."

"Why?" She demanded.

"It's just..." He glanced up at her sheepishly, "You were talking in your sleep again."

"And?" This wasn't news to Donna. She always let things slip when she was asleep. Only this time she had nothing to let slip. She wasn't lying when she said she told Shaun everything.

"You were talking about needing to see a... doctor?" He reached across the table for her hand. "Do you?"

"No! Why would I?"

"You tell me."

Donna snatched her hand from Shaun's grasp, taking the defensive. "It must have been just one of those funny dreams, y'know. The ones that don't make sense."

"Donna..."

She stood up abruptly, her chair scraping against the kitchen tiles. "I'm going to get dressed."

"Donna!"

But she was already gone.

...

He sat on the lower steps of the TARDIS, a buzzing, whizzing, ding - thing - anator held in his hands. He hardly saw it. He was too busy deep in thought.

The Doctor was thinking about his previous companions. Rose, Donna, Martha, Sarah and even Jack. Wow, he loved Jack. Amy... Rory... He tried not to think about his Ponds too much as they hurt the most at the moment. They were the most recent.

He had guilt. So much guilt. It was all his fault, their absence. He drove them past their limits and he gave them challenge after challenge after challenge, stupidly thinking they would be fine, pip and dandy afterwards. He was wrong. It all ended in tears. Only Martha was the one who left of her own accord.

He often thought he should leave Clara. Just drop her off and never come back, just like the old days. Yes, she'd hate him for it but at least she'd be safe. She'd be free to live her life without fear of an unexpected death. She wouldn't get trapped anywhere like Rose or his Ponds. She'd live a happy, long human life and die in the most human way possible; of old age. She'd fall in love. Probably get married. Have children and grandchildren and great grandchildren. He'd drop in of course, occasionally. Well, that's what he said about the others but he never did.

And the Doctor? He'd be okay. He'd promise himself not to have anymore companions, despite how lonely or sad he'd get. He wouldn't be selfish anymore. He'd been so so so selfish.

"Doctor?"

He glanced up upon hearing her soft, sweet tone. A sad smile broke over his face. "Clara"

"Are you okay?" she asked, her face showing the sincerest concern. Oh, his Clara. Always kind. Always caring.

"Of course I am okay. When am I not okay? I was even okay when we went to that planet where everybody wasn't okay and that is just proof of how okay I am."

She took slow steps towards him, sitting down next to him and taking his hand. He allowed it to be taken, feeling comfort from her touch. "You talk as fast as Sherlock Holmes when you're lying," She observed.

"I do not!" he said. And then: "Which one?"

"The Benedict Cumberbatch one. The one we watched last night."

"How dare you compare me to him! I don't like him. He has a weird chin." He said, touching his own chin as he spoke.

She squeezed his hand. "You're thinking about them, aren't you? The ones before me."

He looked at her in surprise. How easily she could read him like a book. He'd never had a companion who could really do that before. Well, maybe Rose...

No. Don't think about Rose. Too much guilt.

"I'm always thinking about them," he admitted.

"Do you miss them?"

"More than anything."

She squeezed his hand again. "Maybe we could... go and find them?"

"No," he said, pulling his hand from hers and jumping up. "They're gone. Lost. I can never get them back."

"Why?" She asked, staring at him unflinchingly, "Why can't you? What happened to them? You know you can do anything."

"Not- not this, Clara. No," He'd already begun making his way up the stairs, "They're not coming back. They can't." Then he disappeared. Clara watched staring after him.

A plan was already forming in her mind...


End file.
